TL: Hua
On the livestream, Pei Luo was being absolutely roasted by everyone.
Pei Luo’s earlier words could only have led to two outcomes. If Qiao Ye had chosen him, it would have shown his confidence and that he was just joking around with the other mentors. But now that Qiao Ye had completely rejected him, his attempt to persuade someone to give up looked to the audience like he was totally delusional.
[Hahaha, I’m dying. Is Pei Luo here to be a comedian?]
[I never realized before that Pei Luo was such an idiot.]
[I’ve noticed that these idols get so much praise from their fans they just float off into the sky. Every mentor here is better than him, so how did he have the face to tell someone to give up?]
[Pei Luo put Qiao Ye in the very last spot during the first public performance and didn’t even pick him for the group’s best performer vote. Did he really think Qiao Ye was an idiot? Who gave him the confidence to think he’d still be chosen?]
[Maybe he thinks he’s the most popular, and trainees need to cling to him to get votes from casual viewers.]
[LOL, Qiao Ye isn’t unpopular, okay? He doesn’t need that little bit of fame.]
[This is the epitome of a man with unwarranted confidence.]
[Unwarranted confidence +1]
[Good thing Qiao Ye didn’t pick him.]
[It’s great that Qiao Ye chose Yanran. Yanran stood up for him last time and even gave him his own best performer vote.]
[I used to think Yanran was trash and that Pei Luo was the best choice, but now I realize I was blind.]
[Wuwuwu, thank you, Teacher Yanran, for also choosing my idol. I’m looking forward to the new collaboration.]
Pei Luo’s fans were frantically trying to control the comments in the livestream. However, no matter how hard they tried, he had offended too many trainees’ fans during the first performance. This new situation was just too embarrassing, and there was no way for them to salvage his image.
The fans watched as everyone mocked their idol as a man with unwarranted confidence, and they were so desperate they wished they could turn into bleach to erase his words. But it was too late. The front-line melon eaters, who were faster than Hong Kong reporters, had already plastered Pei Luo’s actions all over various forums.
Even on Weibo, many people were discussing this matter.
Not long after, someone created a GIF of his words and Qiao Ye’s choice. Marketing accounts immediately reposted it and filed it under the hashtag #FamousSlapInTheFaceMoment#.
With a few more actions by netizens, Pei Luo was on the verge of being collectively ridiculed.
Just when everyone thought Pei Luo’s last move was stupid enough and he would probably stop trying to save face, he surprised everyone by pulling another stunt during the second round of trainee selections.
After the first round of mutual selections between trainees and mentors, the production team called all four mentors to the stage and had them stand in front of their respective teams. The camera panned over the groups, and the results were immediately clear.
From left to right, Han Zhe had successfully selected five trainees, and Tang Tang had six.
Pei Luo had the fewest with only three.
Next to him, Lin Yanran’s team was massive, having selected a total of nine people!
[The contrast between Pei Luo’s and Yanran’s teams is so obvious.]
[You can tell everyone really dislikes Pei Luo. Almost everyone from his original team ran away.]
[Not everyone, Xuan Yihan is still deeply in love with him.]
[LOL, he loves the center position he got from him.]
[Hahaha, the way the show arranged this selection is kind of genius. The trainees’ feelings towards the mentors are so clear.]
[So many people chose Yanran, and he chose a lot of them, too.]
[His group’s popularity, skills, and overall level all seem so balanced. It looks like he really thought about how to put his team together.]
[I really like the group he put together. Yanran has some talent.]
[You can always trust Yanran’s judgment!]
Since none of the mentors had filled their 10-person quotas, the production team announced a second round of selections. According to the rules, they could choose from the remaining 23 trainees to complete their teams.
The camera then panned over the trainees who hadn’t been selected.
The audience found that in the first round of mutual selection, the trainees with high popularity or strong abilities had almost been divided up by the various mentors.
Most of the remaining ones were either mediocre or had a lopsided skill set that wasn’t ideal for a team performance.
However, a few of the unchosen trainees were not that bad. Five of them were relatively strong and popular.
They had been eyed by mentors before, but due to their own poor decisions, they ended up unselected.
As the camera showed their faces, the audience knew that these five would be the ones every mentor would want to snatch up to complete their teams.
Just as everyone was looking forward to the mentors’ fight for these trainees, the production team announced another rule.
To ensure fairness, each mentor could select two people per round. After a round, they would continue to another until all the teams were full. The selection order would be determined by a lottery.
After hearing the rules, Lin Yanran went to the box and picked a ball.
He opened it and saw the number 3.
The third to select…
Although the order wasn’t ideal, he only needed one more trainee, so his pressure was the lowest, making it acceptable.
When Tangtang, who picked second, walked past him, she saw his number and excitedly waved her number 2 at him, showing off, “Haha, my luck’s pretty good!”
Han Zhe heard this and waved his own ball at Tangtang in a humblebrag, “My luck seems okay, too.”
His number was 1.
The three mentors happily chatted and laughed, but Pei Luo, who stood alone on the side, had lost his previous confidence. His face was a dark cloud.
He had the worst luck, picking number 4, which meant he would be the last to choose from the “leftovers.”
Xuan Yihan, who was on the opposite side, saw his number and couldn’t help but roll his eyes in anger.
“Our luck is so bad…”
Xuan Yihan complained unhappily while mentally cursing Pei Luo for being such an idiot.
He had no idea what Pei Luo was doing. He had 10 slots in hand, and he even went to the trouble of pulling two popular trainees into his group. But after all of his ridiculous moves, the team still only had three people.
He saw that several trainees in the middle, who were in the top 20 in popularity and skill, had chosen Pei Luo, but he was so busy trying to show off to the other mentors that he got played and didn’t even know to pick them.
Xuan Yihan looked at his two teammates. He had planned everything out perfectly. He would get two people, and if Pei Luo could select another two or three with decent popularity, their team would be very strong.
But now, the other groups had not only two or three popular trainees but also several in the middle range, so they had no advantage in popularity at all.
Most importantly, their two teammates were popular, but their skills were quite average, and their stage performances weren’t outstanding.
So, they were lacking both mid-range popularity and skilled people to lead them. If Pei Luo had drawn one of the first two numbers and could have picked two more popular trainees, their group would have been able to compete with the others. But Pei Luo drew such a bad number…
Thinking about how he had to team up with seven mismatched trainees, Xuan Yihan wished he could go back in time.
He should have stuck with Tangtang’s team. Even if he hadn’t been chosen in the first round, he would have had a chance to be picked by another mentor, rather than suffer in Pei Luo’s group.
After the lottery, the mentors began to select.
Pei Luo was dispirited, and his energy had instantly drained.
First, because of the massive embarrassment from the Qiao Ye situation, he hadn’t recovered yet. Second, the five trainees he wanted were all taken by the first three mentors, and he had no desire to choose any more.
But then, the second round took an unexpected turn.
Tangtang felt a bit guilty because one trainee from her original group had chosen her, but she hadn’t selected him in return. So in the unselected round, she chose him back.
Han Zhe did something similar, passing on a popular trainee to select someone he had always liked.
As a result, Pei Luo realized he could still get two of the remaining trainees!
Seeing that the situation wasn’t as bad as he had thought, Pei Luo’s spirits immediately lifted.
After Han Zhe made his choices, it was Lin Yanran’s turn.
His team already had nine people and only needed one more, so he was much more relaxed than the other mentors. There was one trainee among the unselected that he really liked, so he didn’t hesitate to choose him.
“Li Yuan,” Lin Yanran said, looking at him with a smile. “Are you willing to join my team?”
Out of Lin Yanran’s 10 slots, nine were successful mutual selections. The only one that failed was with Li Yuan. At the time, Lin Yanran had chosen him, but Li Yuan had chosen Pei Luo instead. They had missed their chance then. Now, in the unselected round, Lin Yanran saw that he still hadn’t been picked and decided to stick with his original choice.
“Your rap in the first performance left a deep impression on me. My team needs a strong rapper, and I think you’re a great fit.”
Li Yuan was very surprised to hear Lin Yanran’s words. He had hesitated before, wondering whether to choose Lin Yanran, but he figured too many people would select him, so he played it safe and chose Pei Luo instead. That one bad decision led him to be unselected. Now, seeing that Lin Yanran was still choosing him, he was both surprised and touched.
“To be honest, I never thought you’d still choose me, Teacher… Thank you for your trust.”
It was clear that he was very happy to join Lin Yanran’s team.
However, at that moment, Pei Luo heard Xuan Yihan say to him from behind, “It’s such a shame. Li Yuan’s first choice was you… It would have been great if he’d joined our team.”
Li Yuan was ranked 13th in popularity and had exceptional rap skills, making him the most popular and comprehensive trainee among the 23 unselected ones. He was undoubtedly the best fit for their team.
Pei Luo looked at Xuan Yihan, saw the anticipation in his eyes, and quietly asked, “Do you really want him in our team?”
Xuan Yihan blinked at him. “Can we?”
As if possessed, Pei Luo nodded like he had lost his mind. So, just as Li Yuan was about to accept Lin Yanran’s invitation, Pei Luo stepped forward.
“Li Yuan.”
His interjection drew everyone’s attention to him.
[??????]
[What is Pei Luo trying to do????]
Even Pei Luo’s fans, who usually supported him unconditionally, felt that something was wrong.
[No, brother, what are you doing????]
Pei Luo walked directly in front of Li Yuan with the microphone in his hand. “You chose me in the last round, and I’m sorry I didn’t choose you. Although regret can be a kind of beauty, I feel… I still want to fix this.”
Everyone was stunned by Pei Luo’s words.
[Holy crap, he’s not trying to steal him, is he?]
[Is he a sore loser????]
[Pei Luo, are you crazy?]
[I’m speechless!]
“I didn’t have a chance to work with you during the first performance, and I don’t want to waste this opportunity for the second one.”
Pei Luo had acted impulsively without thinking through a good reason, so he started to make things up on the spot.
By the time he was halfway through, he realized what he had done but couldn’t back out, so he had to bite the bullet and keep talking nonsense.
“I believe that if you join our team, we’ll have an amazing collaboration. Honestly, I’m already looking forward to it. I’m sure we can create a classic stage that will blow everyone away. And I believe… our collaboration, um… not only will be on this second stage, but in the future… we’ll definitely have more stages together.”
[Someone, please translate what Pei Luo is saying.]
[What’s this about one stage, more stages? What is he even talking about?]
[Is he speaking Chinese? Why can’t I understand him?]
[Stop embarrassing yourself and get off the stage, please.]
[If you’re going to steal someone, at least have a good reason. Look at how simple and direct Yanran’s words were. I don’t understand a single thing he just said.]
[This is the first time I’ve realized Pei Luo is such a fool. Can he please read a book?]
[Brother, please stop talking, I beg you, just get down.]
[How embarrassing.]
After Pei Luo finished his speech, the entire venue went quiet. Lin Yanran, who was about to lose a team member, was also stunned for a moment. He wondered if this was even allowed by the competition rules. What was Pei Luo doing?
Lin Yanran looked at the director in confusion, only to see that Song Yingming’s eyes were shining, as if he was extremely pleased with this sudden, dramatic turn of events. Since the director didn’t want to stop him, it seemed they were hoping he and Pei Luo would get into a fight over the trainee.
After understanding the production team’s intentions, Lin Yanran thought for a moment, then turned his head slightly to look at Pei Luo.
Surprisingly, Pei Luo, who had come up aggressively to steal someone, had an unnatural expression on his face.
At a quick glance, his face seemed fine, but the regret in his eyes and his slightly trembling hand gripping the microphone betrayed him.
Lin Yanran didn’t point out Pei Luo’s nervousness. He calmly looked away and turned back to Li Yuan.
“Teacher Pei Luo also admires you.”
Then he smiled slightly. “This is your own stage. The choice is yours. Just follow your heart.”
He didn’t get into a fight with Pei Luo or use convoluted words to win over the trainee. But with just two simple sentences, Lin Yanran easily defused the awkward atmosphere. He knew that in this situation, the more he said, the more mistakes he would make. He wasn’t going to fall into the production team’s trap!
After Lin Yanran finished speaking, Pei Luo’s hand holding the microphone stiffened, and he looked at him in surprise.
Yanran…
Even though he was the one who broke the rules and tried to steal someone, Lin Yanran didn’t argue with him and even thoughtfully gave him a way out…
Pei Luo was in disbelief. S
omeone as malicious and sharp-tongued as Yanran… shouldn’t he be using this opportunity to mock him and make him look bad? Yet he had actually saved him.
While Pei Luo was completely shocked by Lin Yanran’s actions, the livestream chat was already filled with insults.
[Is the production team allowing stealing? What about the rules from before? Was the lottery just for show?]
[My god, this is so dramatic. Is this scripted?]
[How could it be scripted? Have you seen the expressions on everyone’s faces? If it were scripted, they’d all deserve an Oscar.]
[I’m no longer a fan. Pei Luo, you’re so embarrassing.]
[Livestreams really reveal people’s true nature. Pei Luo has completely turned me off today.]
[What a sore loser.]
[You’re all scolding Pei Luo, but am I the only one who’s now a fan of Yanran? He’s so composed.]
[Composed +1. This isn’t the first time Pei Luo has made things difficult for him, but he handles it so well every time. It’s so sad.]
[Yanran hasn’t done anything, so why is Pei Luo always going after him?]
[Wuwuwu, this handsome guy is so pitiful. He’s being robbed and still has to give the other person a way out. I’m so touched I’m switching to his fandom.]
After this farce, Li Yuan was afraid that he would not be able to make a name for himself in Lin Yanran’s team with a top trainee like Qiao Ye, so he finally chose to believe Pei Luo’s lies and joined his team.
However, even with Li Yuan on his team, Pei Luo didn’t feel happy.
While his move had fixed his team’s lineup, it had also gotten him roasted on trending topics.
Many people who used to like him and call him their “handsome husband” were now insulting him, calling him low, stupid, and a sore loser.
On the other hand, Lin Yanran, who had gone through the same event, gained a lot of new fans. Everyone was praising him for being handsome, kind-hearted, and having high emotional intelligence.
As soon as the livestream ended, Pei Luo’s agent gave him a serious scolding. “Why didn’t I realize you were so stupid before? Are you so flattered by fans every day that you don’t even know your own weight?”
“Did you hear what Gu Siye said to you? Is your status higher than his? Do you have more fans than him? How could you talk with such arrogance?”
“Why would you try to steal someone from Yanran? So what if your team’s lineup is weak? The trainees are the ones debuting, not you. You don’t get eliminated for a bad performance, so what do you care about?! I got you on this show to gain fans, not to lose them!”
“Didn’t you learn your lesson from last time with Xuan Yihan?”
At the end of his tirade, the agent didn’t forget to warn Pei Luo: “Keep your little schemes in check and keep your distance from Xuan Yihan. Think about whether you can handle it if your fans turn on you.”
Afterward, his team quickly hired a PR firm to quietly spin his foolish actions as a scripted plot from the production team and blamed his arrogant words on malicious editing. After a lot of hard work, the team managed to stabilize some of his fan base.
However, regular people weren’t buying it and still thought he was pathetic and foolish.
As an idol, Pei Luo’s image was severely damaged, and he lost a large number of fans. The two endorsement deals he had secured also fell through.
After being grounded by his agent for two days, Pei Luo returned to the set, as he still had to lead his trainees for the upcoming performance.
As soon as he arrived, Xuan Yihan came up to him to talk. After a perfunctory check-in, Xuan Yihan began hinting about the center position.
Pei Luo impatiently waved his hand. This was the first time he found Xuan Yihan annoying. He looked at Xuan Yihan’s face. He used to like him so much, but now when he saw his face, he had only one thought: if it weren’t for Xuan Yihan, would he be in this mess?
Translator-sama please update 🙏🙏